The former federal intelligence officer who gunned down his ex-girlfriend in broad daylight in Manhattan made his first court appearance Thursday.

Vincent Verdi — accused of stalking Elizabeth Lee-Herman for months before allegedly taking her life on Nov. 1 outside Cooper Union — shot himself in the head with the murder weapon in a gory public display.

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But the 62-year-old survived and is now facing charges in Manhattan Supreme Court.

Verdi, who did stints on special projects with the CIA and Defense Department in Afghanistan, is charged with murder, weapons possession, aggravated criminal contempt and stalking.

The Assistant District Attorney pushed for an answer from Verdi's attorney as to whether he'd use psychiatric defense "as soon as possible."

The Daily News previously reported that Verdi may have suffered from mental health issues related to his work. Sources told The News he was a military sniper and was employed by the Drug Enforcement Agency in the 1990s but was fired.

“My client has great regret over the family’s loss — more than he’s able to express,” Verdi's lawyer said. (Alec Tabak/for New York Daily News)

Daniel Lee, the victim's brother, said he hoped court proceedings might shed light on what went wrong with the relationship.

"Perhaps through the trial we will begin to understand the unexplainable," he said.

Verdi, who met Lee-Herman on Match.com, was previously arrested for obsessively following her — even tracking her to the dentist's office and to a theater.

Lee said his sister could have never predicted what happened.

"I don't think she anticipated this would be the outcome," he said.

Her close friend Anne McCarthy said that a couple of days before she died, Lee-Herman said she was going to report to the Manhattan District Attorney's office Verdi's failure to follow his restraining order.

It was unclear if she ever did.

McCarthy said her friend "did everything right" by going to authorities over Verdi.